REGGIA DI CASERTA + TOP PIZZA + MOZZARELLA FACTORY

The Royal Palace of Caserta and its park, two jewels of unparalleled splendor, were included in the Unesco World Heritage List in 1997.

Designed in the eighteenth century by Luigi Vanvitelli, commissioned by Charles III of Bourbon, the Reggia, which represents the triumph of the Italian Baroque, is one of the most important works of the famous Neapolitan architect: its visitor is enchanted by the beauty of the interiors and the magnificence of the 'external.

With great attention to detail and divided into four monumental courtyards, the building is faced by a spectacular park which is now the destination of thousands of tourists.

 

The sumptuous palace is an ideal and original fusion of two other royal residences: the Palace of Versailles of the kings of France and the Madrid Palace of the Escorial, seat of the kings of Spain. which occupies 45,000 square meters and, with its five floors, reaches a height of 36 m. On the main facade there are 143 windows and in the building there are 1200 rooms and 34 stairways. The building is made of brick and the two lower floors are covered with travertine slabs. The entire structure is crowned by a large central dome. Visiting its interior one is amazed by the continuous succession of stuccoes, bas-reliefs, frescoes, sculptures, inlaid floors. Remarkable are those of the Hall of Astrea, the Hall of Mars and the Throne Room. The latter is the largest of the royal apartments and was used for the reception of personalities.

 

The most spectacular parts of the palace are probably the whole of the atrium and the monumental staircase of honor and the chapel.

The staircase is an invention of the eighteenth-century scenographic art and connects the lower and upper vestibule, which leads to the royal apartments. The Palatine Chapel, designed by Vanvitelli right down to the decorations, is certainly the environment that more than any other shows a clear analogy with the Versailles model.

Also noteworthy is the court theater, an admirable example of eighteenth-century theatrical architecture: the rather rounded horseshoe-shaped room is made solemn by the particular arrangement of the columns, in a giant order.

But the other rooms are also exceptionally beautiful.

The art gallery inside is organized in a series of connected rooms and houses numerous paintings depicting still lifes, war events and portraits of the Bourbon family.

 

The Bourbon crib is exhibited in the old apartment, a great passion of the noble family from which the well-known Neapolitan tradition for setting up the Nativity originated.

The palatine library is annexed to the apartments of the Queen, a refined woman of great culture, and finely decorated with reliefs and frescoes including the one that reproduces the zodiac signs and constellations, executed on a design by Vanvitelli himself.

The rooms dedicated to the four seasons are also suggestive.

 

An integral part of the majesty and beauty of the Royal Palace is the park, made up of fountains and waterfalls.

The park is a typical example of an Italian garden, built with vast lawns, square flower beds and, above all, a triumph of water features. Along the central axis, pools, fountains and waterfalls follow one another, adorned with large sculptural groups. The result is a scenographic effect of great impact that reaches its peak in the Great Waterfall. The park extends up to the top of the hill in front of the palace, where an English garden is the setting for a walk among exotic plants.

Finally, the fact that the English Garden, less symmetrical than the Italian one, was desired by Maria Carolina of Austria and numerous indigenous and exotic plants were planted, including some beautiful cedars of Lebanon, is singular.

Together with the Royal Palace of Caserta and its park, Unesco has also included the Aqueduct in the World Heritage List, also built by the architect Luigi Vanvitelli and the nearby complex of San Leucio.